Minorities should be given equal opportunities: Buddhadeb

Kolkata, Dec18 : Reservation is not the only way for uplift of the minorities in India, there is need to provide them with equal opportunities to better their social and economic conditions, West Bengal Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee said Friday.

"Reservation is not the only way for the uplift of minorities. Equal opportunities should be provided to the minorities and the majority," Bhattacharjee said while speaking at a function celebrating World Minorities Day.

Bhattacharjee slammed the opposition for spreading rumours that the Left Front government would take away land from minorities for industrialisation.

"Before the election, the opposition spread rumours that the state government will take away land from only the minorities for industrialisation. It is not just untrue but absurd," he said.

He criticised the Rajinder Sachar Committee report on the Social, economic and educational status of the Muslim community of India for commenting that the condition of the minority community in West Bengal was worse than in other states.

"The Sachar Committee report stated that condition of Muslims in this state is worse compared to other states, both socially and economically. But this is not true. The committee made its report without taking into account the amount of land distributed among the landless Muslim farmers as part of the state's land reforms," said Bhattacharjee.

"The committee also did not consider the percentage of minority employees in healthcare, education, municipal and police services. The report was made only on the representation of minorities in government offices," he added.